A beautifully written food memoir chronicling one cook's journey from her rural Midwestern hometown to the intoxicating world of New York City fine dining and back again in search of her culinary roots. Before Amy Thielen frantically plated rings of truffled potatoes in some of New York City s finest kitchens for chefs David Bouley, Daniel Boulud, and Jean-Georges Vongeric A beautifully written food memoir chronicling one cook's journey from her rural Midwestern hometown to the intoxicati...
| Title | : | Give a Girl a Knife |
| Author | : | Amy Thielen |
| Rating | : | |
| Genres | : | Autobiography |
| ISBN | : | Give a Girl a Knife: A Memoir ISBN |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 320 pages pages |
Give a Girl a Knife Reviews
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I picked this book up to satisfy a challenge I am doing in a Goodreads group. Foodie memoirs are not something that I would normally pick. I am pretty sure its the first Foodie Memoir I have ever read I am not much of a cook or much of a foodie lol I mean I like to eat just nothing too...
the most exciting thing to me about this book was the familiarity. Amy Thielen is from Minnesota, studied English at a small private school, procrastinated on her future career, lived *in my neighborhood* for a while, and went to culinary school. THIS IS RELATABLE CONTENT for me. the t...
Three and a half stars. The first half of this memoir is strong and tight, but the story meanders after the half-way point and (I think) dwells too much on Thielen's family and life before becoming a professional chef. I enjoyed her recollections for the most part, and wish I could tas...
This book gets five stars because it is so relatable to me. I love a good food memoir and she goes beyond cooking to gardening, and living off her produce. In addition, she grew up in and currently lives near Park Rapids, MN where I have been going to the lake every summer since 1985. ...
Minnesota! Chef! Cooking! What?s not to love! The author?s writing is delicious, too! ...
I have to admit that I enjoyed this book because I could relate to this Minnesota gal. OK, ok, I don't live off the grid part of the year and in the city part of the year. I haven't thrown myself into a cooking passion nor been a greatly successful gardener. A part of me wants to do al...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I picked this book up to satisfy a challenge I am doing in a Goodreads group. Foodie memoirs are not something that I would normally pick. I am pretty sure its the first Foodie Memoir I have ever read I am not much of a cook or much of a foodie lol I mean I like to eat just nothing too...
the most exciting thing to me about this book was the familiarity. Amy Thielen is from Minnesota, studied English at a small private school, procrastinated on her future career, lived *in my neighborhood* for a while, and went to culinary school. THIS IS RELATABLE CONTENT for me. the t...
Three and a half stars. The first half of this memoir is strong and tight, but the story meanders after the half-way point and (I think) dwells too much on Thielen's family and life before becoming a professional chef. I enjoyed her recollections for the most part, and wish I could tas...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I picked this book up to satisfy a challenge I am doing in a Goodreads group. Foodie memoirs are not something that I would normally pick. I am pretty sure its the first Foodie Memoir I have ever read I am not much of a cook or much of a foodie lol I mean I like to eat just nothing too...
the most exciting thing to me about this book was the familiarity. Amy Thielen is from Minnesota, studied English at a small private school, procrastinated on her future career, lived *in my neighborhood* for a while, and went to culinary school. THIS IS RELATABLE CONTENT for me. the t...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I picked this book up to satisfy a challenge I am doing in a Goodreads group. Foodie memoirs are not something that I would normally pick. I am pretty sure its the first Foodie Memoir I have ever read I am not much of a cook or much of a foodie lol I mean I like to eat just nothing too...
the most exciting thing to me about this book was the familiarity. Amy Thielen is from Minnesota, studied English at a small private school, procrastinated on her future career, lived *in my neighborhood* for a while, and went to culinary school. THIS IS RELATABLE CONTENT for me. the t...
Three and a half stars. The first half of this memoir is strong and tight, but the story meanders after the half-way point and (I think) dwells too much on Thielen's family and life before becoming a professional chef. I enjoyed her recollections for the most part, and wish I could tas...
This book gets five stars because it is so relatable to me. I love a good food memoir and she goes beyond cooking to gardening, and living off her produce. In addition, she grew up in and currently lives near Park Rapids, MN where I have been going to the lake every summer since 1985. ...
Minnesota! Chef! Cooking! What?s not to love! The author?s writing is delicious, too! ...
I have to admit that I enjoyed this book because I could relate to this Minnesota gal. OK, ok, I don't live off the grid part of the year and in the city part of the year. I haven't thrown myself into a cooking passion nor been a greatly successful gardener. A part of me wants to do al...
This book is half foodie memoir and half autobiography in two (mostly-)separate sections. I finally just put it down and stopped. It's not bad, it just didn't hold my interest ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I picked this book up to satisfy a challenge I am doing in a Goodreads group. Foodie memoirs are not something that I would normally pick. I am pretty sure its the first Foodie Memoir I have ever read I am not much of a cook or much of a foodie lol I mean I like to eat just nothing too...
the most exciting thing to me about this book was the familiarity. Amy Thielen is from Minnesota, studied English at a small private school, procrastinated on her future career, lived *in my neighborhood* for a while, and went to culinary school. THIS IS RELATABLE CONTENT for me. the t...
Three and a half stars. The first half of this memoir is strong and tight, but the story meanders after the half-way point and (I think) dwells too much on Thielen's family and life before becoming a professional chef. I enjoyed her recollections for the most part, and wish I could tas...
This book gets five stars because it is so relatable to me. I love a good food memoir and she goes beyond cooking to gardening, and living off her produce. In addition, she grew up in and currently lives near Park Rapids, MN where I have been going to the lake every summer since 1985. ...
Minnesota! Chef! Cooking! What?s not to love! The author?s writing is delicious, too! ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I picked this book up to satisfy a challenge I am doing in a Goodreads group. Foodie memoirs are not something that I would normally pick. I am pretty sure its the first Foodie Memoir I have ever read I am not much of a cook or much of a foodie lol I mean I like to eat just nothing too...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I took this book out from the library because my wife was getting tattooed by a woman who loves knives and I needed something to read. I figured it was fate? Kind of? I started reading it without reading the description at all. I do impulsive things like that sometimes. This time it wo...
The best part about this book was the writing. She tells her story with self-depreciating wit and honesty. I thought the way she jumped around chronologically could have been done better, maybe with flashbacks to rural MN during her NYC time? Ironically enough, I liked the parts of the...
I picked this book up to satisfy a challenge I am doing in a Goodreads group. Foodie memoirs are not something that I would normally pick. I am pretty sure its the first Foodie Memoir I have ever read I am not much of a cook or much of a foodie lol I mean I like to eat just nothing too...
the most exciting thing to me about this book was the familiarity. Amy Thielen is from Minnesota, studied English at a small private school, procrastinated on her future career, lived *in my neighborhood* for a while, and went to culinary school. THIS IS RELATABLE CONTENT for me. the t...
Three and a half stars. The first half of this memoir is strong and tight, but the story meanders after the half-way point and (I think) dwells too much on Thielen's family and life before becoming a professional chef. I enjoyed her recollections for the most part, and wish I could tas...
This book gets five stars because it is so relatable to me. I love a good food memoir and she goes beyond cooking to gardening, and living off her produce. In addition, she grew up in and currently lives near Park Rapids, MN where I have been going to the lake every summer since 1985. ...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
I completely loved this book. Along the lines of Ruth Reichl and other foodie books, Amy has mastered the art of descriptive writing. I read sentences aloud to my husband because the details were making my mouth water. See my full review on my blog. ...
I really enjoyed reading about her time navigating the Manhattan line cook world, and her life in Minnesota was definitely intriguing, but there was a tendency to simply repeat stories from earlier in the book, instead of just simple callbacks, which got wearisome. Those constant repet...
So fun! My only critique would be the bouncing around in time, I would have liked it to be more linear. Regardless, her descriptions of food made my mouth water (perhaps with the exception of making head cheese), and their house in the woods became almost another character in her story...
This book is broken into four sections; the first section sets up who the author is, she tells you just enough about her Minnesota upbringing, and rural living with her boyfriend, before launching into their decision to move to New York to pursue their separate careers (she, culinary s...
"Cities collect culture, but it all begins in the country." Maybe it's because I grew up in a house that smells like bacon from Thielen Meats on Sunday. Maybe it's because this will be the first Memorial Day in my memory I'm unable to head north to my grandparents' cabin, so Amy's mus...
A delightful read! Amy's descriptive writing is superb - taste, texture, color, smell. I got hungry every time I read a passage about her cooking. I enjoyed being taken behind-the-scenes of New York City's fanciest restaurants and also the places I already love and know: northern Minne...
For some reason, this isn?t keeping my attention right now. I might try it again another time. ...
I love cooking memoirs. And this one was no exception. Beautifully written. ...
Though it's nonfiction, Give A Girl A Knife was an interesting sister read to Stephanie Danler's debut novel, Sweetbitter, which I read only weeks before finally picking up Amy Thielen's compelling and beautifully written food memoir. At thirty-some-odd-years Thielen chronicles her ...
In recent years, I've become a fan of chef memoirs. Amy Thielen's "Give a Girl a Knife" is no exception -- until it becomes an exception. Theilen was an English major, and she knows how to write an anecdote and describe food. For example she captures perfectly the reverence of two line...
I'd rate this 4.5 stars. About 14-15 years ago (how can that be?) I went to culinary school, and worked as a personal chef for about 18 months until the economy started tanking. At that time, I always had this dream of opening a little restaurant, nothing super fancy. Of course, onc...
What a fantastic food memoir! I loved every page of this delectable dive into Theilen's journey as she navigated the world of cooking starting in the middle of nowhere and landing in the midst of one of the busiest cities in the world then retreating once more to the rural life where s...
Amy Thielen is a popular chef, writer, and TV personality on Food Network's Heartland Table. She grew up in rural Minnesota but moved to New York in her 20s to work at various impressive fine-dining restaurants. After the birth of their son, she and her artist husband eventually moved ...
A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher Give a Girl a Knife is probably one of the most surprisingly entertaining books I've ever read. I was super curious about this book when I started it and I didn't expect to enjoy it so much that I would read it in one sitting. ...
This is a really unusual memoir because it contains two distinct narratives. In one of them, Amy Thielen falls in love with a "back to nature" artist who has built a one-room cabin in the remote northern Midwestern woods. The cabin lacks plumbing or electricity, and it's winter for abo...
I am not a big foodie, but a enjoy a good meal, and I love a good sip of tea and Give a Girl a Knife suggests an interesting tale as it follows Thielan?s path from a backwoods kitchen in the woods to New York?s finest kitchens. Sadly, I didn't learn much. I do not feel like I hav...
Amy Thielen has vivid memories associated with food, and her mouthwatering descriptions kept me interested in her culinary journey. Just make sure you have plenty of snacks handy while reading, because you will get hungry. ...
I received this book free through Goodreads Giveaways. I thought I'd like this book more than I did, as I am also from rural Minnesota and moved to a big city (not NYC, but still). I just thought it was lacking. I enjoyed the NYC kitchen parts the best and once they were done after...
DNF - stopping around the halfway point. I wasn't finding Thielen's life story, her use of language, or her descriptions of food and restaurants very interesting. ...
If a book could crawl straight out of my soul I?m convinced it would be this book. It was already bound to top my favorite list- a Minnesota girl who fulfills her dream of becoming a chef? If ever I was convinced that somebody loved Minnesota more than I do- it is Amy Thielen. Her no...
Not just another chefs memoir, but A paean to The beauty of food, the complexity of family, and the ineluctable pull place of origin. ...
